Salon

This past Tuesday, I had the pleasure of participating in a donor function for my upcoming show, Glory Denied.  Our producers organized a cruise for friends of the company.  It left from Chelsea Piers and went down to the tip of Manhattan for a view of the Statue of Liberty, then up the East River under the bridges.  We then turned around and headed home.

One of my greatest joys of being an opera singer is attending the parties.  I love to get dressed up and chat with new people.  I am always surprised at the interesting stories of how these guests and donors came to be opera fans.  Each story is unique and, while sometimes I may forget the name, I usually remember how they learned to fall in love with opera.

This particular event was made even more special by the attendance of the composer, Tom Cipullo, and the author of the book, Glory Denied, Tom Philpott.  Both shared insights into their work with the group.  After that, my fellow actors and I did readings from the show.

After the presentation, I was able to enjoy a glass of wine and have some interesting conversations.  Talking with Mr. Philpott, I learned a few details about Col. Thompson that helped organize some of my thoughts on the character.

I asked him how he felt about his work being turned into an opera.  When he first received a letter from Mr. Cipullo asking for permission to adapt his book, Mr. Philpott thought it might be a joke.  Surprising stories like this kept the conversations going both with the artists and with our guests.

I remember that my sister and I once bemoaned the death of the Salon as an evenings entertainment.  There was a time where people would meet and they would spend the evening talking about art and science and would perform music for each other.  As I walked home down 23rd Street, it felt good to know that I had just attended one.

Interview with Tom Cipullo, Pt. 4

I might get  a little to theoretical in these posts, but since theory is not my strongest suite, I am hopeful that we won't get too bogged down.

I have a list of themes in my book.  If I was talking about an opera by Wagner, I might call them "leitmotifs."  As we have been going through the score, if I hear another actor's line of music in the orchestra, I write the words down in that spot.  It is a clue as to some of the subtext that is going on in the drama of the show.  These clues don't necessarily give an exact opinion, they simply give a starting point for discussions among the cast and directors as to what we want to try to accomplish in the scene.

Happy Birthday!

http://www.wired.com/gamelife/2010/10/nes-25th-anniversary/
Today is the 25th Anniversary of the release of the Nintendo Entertainment System.  I know you are wondering, "Why on earth would an opera singer care about such a trivial thing?"  Well, over the years, I have learned a lot of valuable lessons from my video game hobby.  I'll be posting about my experiences as a gamer and how it has influenced my work as an opera singer.

Interview with Tom Cipullo, Pt. 3

As Mr. Cipullo is asked about his influences, I think back to a conversation that I had with a castmate that once we sorted out the challenges of counting measures and beats, the music of this opera becomes immensely singable.  There are all sorts of cues in the orchestra part that can help inform your entrances and cutoffs.  The learning curve was steep at first, but after awhile, I started to stitch large pieces of the show in mind.

I've only done a few modern operas.  As a younger singer, I sang the role of Kaspar in Amahl and the Night Visitors.  (Chelsea Opera took their Amahl to Los Angeles for my first touring show).  My first experience with a 20th century opera, though was Robert Ward's Roman Fever as an undergraduate music student.  It is a fascinating show and I played the smallest part, a waiter.  I also was not a terribly good musician at that point in my life and the counting and tonality were a constant challenge.  I wish I could say that I was amazing in the part.  I was simply o.k. because I was legitimately held back by my lack of musical discipline.

I'll continue to watch and post these video series.  They are a great resource for my blog and for my "book."

Oh, because you are wondering, the greatest "modern opera" experience so far?  Hanging 30 feet above the stage on a rope net as I was a sailor in the chorus of Billy Budd at Seattle Opera.  I could have seriously fallen on my head.  It was awesome.

Interview with Tom Cipullo, Pt. 2

As an actor/singer, it has been fascinating to work with on a piece with a living composer.  Last night at music rehearsal, our music director commented, "I have to check that with Tom."  It brought a smile to my face when I thought that, two hundred-odd years ago, someone might same the thing about Mozart.

Interview with Tom Cipullo, pt. 1

Posted below is the first in a 12-part interview that Lynne Hayden-Findlay, one of the producers at Chelsea Opera, did with Tom Cipullo, the composer of Glory Denied.

We had our first music rehearsal last night.  It was great to meet the talented cast and start digging into this rich work.

Those of you who read the blog, are you interested in hearing about how we approach the opera?  Have you wondered about the process of learning and rehearsing a 21st-Century opera?  Hit the comments below to ask questions or post on Facebook to let me know if you have questions.  Email works too.

Miles for Midwives

As something unusual, the whole family did the 5K Miles for Midwives race in Prospect Park this morning.  Running races in the city alternate between giant events (such as the Marathon) and small races like this one.

I pushed my daughter in our running stroller.  I did not win any prizes for my time (about 27:30), but we enjoyed it and the Peanut freaked out with joy as I pushed her over the finish line.  The crowd cheered her on and she waved to everyone and clapped with joy.

 I love New York because, prior to the race, the Peanut and I were just hanging around.  We saw a mom with a double-bob and who was looking at us as if she knew who we were.  Turns out Kathleen had met her at the local playground.  Lizzie, a mother of two, has a wonderful blog called "The Mother Runner"that I follow regularly.  Since she recognized my daughter, we quickly put two and two together and we introduced ourselves.

In addition to being a great blogger, Lizzie won the women's race and her husband was the first over the finish line pushing a running stroller!  I was doubly impressed after my slog through the race.

One of my favorite parts of running these types of races is that there are all sorts of vendors and free samples.  Since I've been fighting a bit of a cold, and rehearsals start tomorrow, I decided to try a free acupuncture session after the race.  It was my first time and I felt pretty tingly.  Do I feel better?  I'm not sure, but it was definitely a great way to try it out.